HCL Tech Q3 net falls 36 pct; hit by forex losses, shares tumble

Profit for HCL, one of India's top five software exporters, fell 36.4 percent to 2.18 billion rupees in the quarter to March, from 3.43 billion a year ago, under US accounting standards.Shares fell over 13 percent in opening deals, before trimming losses to trade 7 percent lower at 128.85 rupees by 10:03 am., while the broader index rose 0.84 percent and the sectoral index fell 0.3 percent.

Forex loses came in at 2.01 billion rupees in the quarter, HCL said, compared with gains in the year-ago period, as the firm hedged against a gain in the rupee, which in fact fell 4 percent in the three months to March.

India's export-driven outsourcing companies have thrived for years by bagging contracts from overseas clients, but the economic slowdown and turmoil in the global financial sector have halted the sector's scorching pace of growth.

Peers such as Infosys Technologies and Tata Consultancy have been downbeat about forecasts for the financial year that began on April 1.Revenue at HCL, which counts Deutsche Bank, Microsoft, Xerox and Cisco as clients, rose by a half to 28.62 billion rupees.